The compound 2,6-di-t-butyl-4-(2'-thenoyl)phenol is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,172,082 as an antiinflammatory agent. The said U.S. patent discloses that the compound may be administered topically in the form of creams or gels. Comparative Example 4 herein describes a cream formulation which was tested clinically and contained 2,6-di-t-butyl-4-(2'-thenoyl)phenol.
Extensive research has now resulted in a substantially improved formulation (Example 1) of this invention which is chemically and physically stable, non-irritating and provides good skin penetrability of the 2,6-di-t-butyl-4-(2'-thenoyl)phenol. Notably, said formulation exhibits a superior degree of in vitro skin penetrability as compared to the prior art cream of Comparative Example 4.